A Gaza hostage-ceasefire is closer than it has ever been before, a senior Hamas official told the Saudi news outlet Asharq on Monday.
"We are closer than ever to reaching a prisoner exchange deal and a ceasefire, provided that Netanyahu does not obstruct the agreement," the official reportedly said, speaking on the condition of anonymity.
Hamas and other terror groups in Gaza have proposed a "progressive and highly flexible position," agreeing to a gradual end to the war and a phased IDF withdrawal based on a mutually agreed timeline, with guarantees from international mediators to “end the aggression and protect the Palestinian people," the official told Asharq.
The Hamas official also said that it would not back down from its demands for an end to the war, a complete Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, the return of displaced persons, and the conclusion of a “dignified prisoner exchange deal.”
Mediators advised against publicly discussing details of the deal to "to ensure its success and to avoid giving Netanyahu an excuse to evade it,” the official told Asharq.
The terror groups are ready for a hostage-ceasefire deal, “but the problem lies with the occupying force,” another source familiar with the negotiations told the Saudi outlet, adding, “The US administration and President-elect Donald Trump want a prisoner exchange deal and a ceasefire agreement as soon as possible, perhaps before the end of the year and before Trump’s inauguration on January 20.”
Talks have reportedly come to a standstill
Concurrently, the Hezbollah-affiliated Lebanese outlet Al Akhbar reported on Monday that while mediators have confirmed that there is an "unprecedented readiness" on both sides to complete a deal, talks have come to a standstill.
Egyptian officials told the Lebanese outlet that the discussions taking place in recent days have "focused on expanding the deal to include larger numbers and extending it over a longer duration, though this matter has not been definitively resolved."
The Egyptian sources reportedly believed the IDF’s recent activities in the Gaza Strip were motivated by US President-elect Donald Trump’s efforts to exert pressure to complete a ceasefire deal.
IDF reportedly trying to maximize leverage
The officials told Al Akhbar they viewed the Israeli military’s activities in the enclave as an effort to extract more concessions from the Palestinian parties, such as “freedom of movement” for the IDF during the period following the implementation of a potential deal.
The Al Akhbar report follows one from Saturday when the news outlet cited Egyptian sources as claiming Israeli terms had complicated talks.
According to the earlier report, the Philadelphi Corridor, a strip running parallel to Gaza’s border with Egypt in the southern portion of the Strip, remained a hurdle as Israel continues to pursue maintaining control of the area as a critical component for preventing Hamas’s future rearmament.
Late last month, an Israeli official told Walla that Hamas was willing to compromise on several points of disagreement in the hostage deal negotiations.
Earlier this month, Palestinian sources familiar with the matter reiterated the idea, telling the Saudi-owned news outlet Asharq Al-Awsat that Hamas may have been more open than it previously had been to compromise in the hostage deal talks and that the terror group had indicated it would accept a gradual withdrawal of Israeli troops from the Gaza Strip, including the Philadelphi and Netzarim corridors.
The Netzarim Corridor is an eight-kilometer stretch of land located a few kilometers south of Gaza City that bisects the Gaza Strip.
On Thursday, Arab mediators told The Wall Street Journal that Hamas has agreed to yield to two of Israel's "key demands" for a ceasefire deal.
Danielle Greyman-Kennard and Aaron Reich contributed to this report.